Hey hi! Do you like Mega Man? Have you ever wanted to check out some of those romhacks people have been making? Well have I got a bundle of games for YOU! :D
I've been playing Mega Man games, fangames and romhacks for about 4 years now and after numerous people asking me what a good one of those was, I decided to put together a small sampler pack of romhacks (the kind that can be played on hardware and/or emulators).
The result is six games, from Mega Man 1 to Mega Man 6, meant to be played in order, offering a good level of challenge. I aimed for a good mix of fun, creative, and zany!
Here are the games I've picked, with their respective romhacking.net links. If you're new to romhacking, there's a helpful FAQ on the site—it basically involves using a patching program to put together each patch (the 'hack' in romhack) with its corresponding base game (the 'rom'). Best of luck, and have fun—for everlasting peace!
(MM1) Mega Man Speed Bomber
by Timmaeus
My understanding is that there's not a lot that can be done with Mega Man 1, technically. As a result, most of the hacks tend to be cosmetic first and foremost—especially the earlier ones. Speed Bomber stands out from the pack by remixing a lot of the enemies in very clever ways. It's hard to go wrong when you make Mega Man go as fast as he does in Burst Chaser, but this hack goes above and beyond to make the first entry in the series a blast to play.
(MM2) Rollchan No Constancy
by Sfon & IKA
I first saw Rockman No Constancy at Games Done Quick and was instantly blown away. This hack goes places and turning it into a Rollchan game thanks to Zynk Oxhyde’s wonderful patch work just makes it better. Everything's been changed, not just the levels; weapons behave differently, and even each boss's thematic element is often remixed. This is on the harder side of things, but good gosh is it ever worth it.
(MM3) Rollchan at the Tokyo Olympics
by insectduel
And now for something completely different!! Let's go to the Robot Olympics of 2020 and take the gold... by defeating the champions of all eight regions of Japan! This hack gets extremely silly and, I feel, is a good palate cleanser at this point. It also has one of the most creative uses I've seen of the Doc Robot fights of Mega Man 3, usually the lowest point by far of what is otherwise one of my all-time favorite Mega Man games.
(MM4) Mega Man 4 Voyage
by DurfarC, MartsINY, Golden Shades, RRThiel, Cosmic Gem and MarkTherence
So right away, some may ask why Minus Infinity isn't in this spot; that's because that game is such a gigantic undertaking that it feels disingenuous to include it in a sampler pack of otherwise straightforward romhacks, and should rightfully be played on its own. It's also punishingly difficult, which Mega Man 4 Voyage isn't! This hack is an absolute delight that pushes the envelope a considerable amount—as Mega Man 4 romhacks tend to do—without overstaying its welcome. There's a reason why it's a community effort with a dedicated boss fight designer. It's a heck of a ride!
(MM5) Rockman 5 Double Jumper
by Rock5easily
If you know anything about me, you'll know how difficult it was for me to put a game with double jump in the title on this list. That alone should tell you just how good it is.
For real.
I think every Mega Man game should have the D tank in it from now on.
(MM6) Rockman 6 Spirit of Hackers
by Puresabe
While Minus Infinity isn't on this list, I did want to end things with a romhack from the same author (along with others, as this was apparently a group effort). Mega Man 6 is already a bit of a weird one, especially given how the base game tends to eat your jump inputs, but this version has been cleaned up and then sent to outer space. It's best to just let you go in fresh because nothing is as it seems. Probably the most difficult hack in this list, but what better way to end the show than with a showstopper?
